


Don't Miss a Beat

by RoseGardenTwilight



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Karaoke AU, LadyNoir - Freeform, mistaken lyrics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-01
Updated: 2019-06-01
Packaged: 2020-04-06 04:05:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19054876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoseGardenTwilight/pseuds/RoseGardenTwilight
Summary: Marinette didn’t know what Alya said to convince her to join greek life. But here she was about to be called up as part of her initiation and karaoke in front of all these strangers- the only comfort was an alcoholic drink for courage and the stimulating conversation with a blond guy in a black cat hoodie.Her beaming smile could not be dampened as she settled back into her seat.“Not bad, but I think I still have a chance,” he coolly replied. “Besides, you got the words wrong.”What? Marinette had heard the song enough from Alya, and if she did need help, then the words were plastered on the screen.“No, I didn’t.”“I’ve heard that song before from one of my friends, and it definitely mentions Starbucks in it.”Marinette could only blink in response; he had to be wrong. The mention of the coffee joint would make no sense in the context of the song.





	Don't Miss a Beat

**Author's Note:**

  * For [overworkedunderwhelmed](https://archiveofourown.org/users/overworkedunderwhelmed/gifts).



> A.n.- The second I got this as my summer santa, I went to work and I really like how this turned out. Hope you enjoy it!
> 
> Thank you to Whim, who betaed this! You are amazing!

This was crazy. Marinette didn’t know what she was doing here, dressed ridiculously about to get on a stage and sing in front of a bunch of people. The blame belonged solely to Alya, who dragged her along for moral support, but now it was growing on her. Marinette had to admit some parts of Greek life were fun, and she had met some great friends. After this week, all of these ridiculous hazing tasks, she would be welcomed into the sorority with open arms. With any luck, she wouldn’t have to barge into a cafe and recite her ABC's, or grab a random guy at 10 pm to and bring him as a date.

She walked into the bar, at least by the sound of it; she wasn’t the only one making a fool of herself. The girl on the stage was singing an off-key rendition of Dancing Queen. Marinette grabbed an open table towards the middle of the bar while Alya headed straight for the bar to buy them drinks. 

“Nervous?” Marinette turned her head to see a college-aged blonde holding two drinks in his hands and a smile that stretched for days. “Do you need some liquid courage?” 

“My friend is getting me some.” Although cute, Marinette didn’t make a habit of taking drinks from strangers. 

“The redhead at the bar? This is from her; she asked me to deliver this for her.” 

Marinette’s eyes wandered past him in time to see her best friend flirting with a guy at the counter. Even with the distance, she could see the blatant motions for her to make a move on the guy standing there. 

“Thanks.” Rules were made to bend sometimes, and she did need the help. With one motion, Marinette downed the drink. 

“So your sorority decided to use animals as part of their torture?” 

Marinette winced, she thought the makeup was a bit over the top, but her future sister applied it, and she was hardly in a place to protest.  

“I can say the same about you,” she shot back playfully,  glancing at his black hoodie sporting cat ears. 

“Guilty as charged,” he grinned, taking a seat across from her, “So, are you a fan of Ladybugs then?” 

“Oh.” Her skin flushed with heat, but thankfully part of the face was covered with red paint. “They’re cute, but I mainly got Ladybug as a nickname because I brought luck to a greek competition and I guess the name stuck.”

“Well, it would be too forward to say that you’re the cutest Ladybug I’ve ever seen.”

“My, my, someone’s a flirt, Kitty.” The nickname rolled off her tongue in confidence. With a hoodie like that, he probably had heard the name hundreds of times. Although, Marinette did enjoy seeing the tables turned as his cheeks dusted pink. 

“What can I say, I’m a trebled man.”

Marinette held back a giggle. “So what song are you singing?”

“Just some random pop song that they pulled out of a hat. It could have been worse. You?”

“I don’t know,” Marinette confessed, “My big picks the song for me and rates me on my performance.”

“Sounds like you have to be pretty sharp to accomplish that successfully.”

“I’ll just be thankful when my turn is over.” 

“What if we made it interesting.” His eyes sparkled mischievously. “Whoever gets the most applause for their performance wins. If I win—I get to take you out on a date.” 

“And if I win?” Marinette asked. 

He opened his mouth to respond-

“Please put your hands together for Ladybug!” 

Marinette pushes herself up, might as well get this over with. All eyes were on her as she made it up on the stage. Music started playing, and she couldn’t help but smile, she could work with this.

_ Nice to meet you, where you been? _

_ I could show you incredible things _

__ Magic, madness, heaven sin  
  


Marinette scanned the room for a mark to look at; otherwise, her anxiety would kick in. Unfortunately, Alya was too far back that the darkness entrapped her. The second set of eyes she immediately latched onto were the familiar green eyes of her blonde company. 

_ Saw you there and I thought _

_ Oh my God, look at that face _

_ You look like my next mistake _

__ Love’s a game, want to play?  
  


The smirk on the blond’s lips edged her on and gave her more confidence on the stage. 

_ I'm dying to see how this one ends _ __  
_ Grab your passport and my hand _ _  
_ __ I can make the bad guys good for a weekend

All her nerves started the fade, and she began to work the stage. Dare she say this was- fun?  
__  
_ So it's gonna be forever _ __  
_ Or it's gonna go down in flames _ __  
_ You can tell me when it's over _ __  
_ If the high was worth the pain _ __  
_ Got a long list of ex-lovers _ __  
_ They'll tell you I'm insane _ __  
_ 'Cause you know I love the players _ _  
_ __ And you love the game

Marinette knew the song well enough that she could play to the strengths of the crowd. There was a bet to win after all. Not that she wouldn’t mind going out with the guy, he seemed nice enough, and handsome to boot. 

Towards the end of the song, Marinette was sure that by the hoots and hollers she gained that not only was her performance enough to make her a shoo-in for the sorority, but also win the bet. 

Her beaming smile could not be dampened as she settled back into her seat.

“Not bad, but I think I still have a chance,” he coolly replied. “Besides, you got the words wrong.”

What? Marinette had heard the song enough from Alya, and if she did need help, then the words were plastered on the screen. 

“No, I didn’t.”

“I’ve heard that song before from one of my friends, and it definitely mentions Starbucks in it.”

Marinette could only blink in response; he had to be wrong. The mention of the coffee joint would make no sense in the context of the song. 

She opened her mouth to correct him- 

“Next up we have, Chat Noir!” The announcer’s voice boomed. 

What a weird name. Who would name themselves after a black cat? Marinette’s question was answered when the blonde stood up from his seat. 

“Hold that thought.” He winked, “I’ll be right Bach.”

Marinette’s eyes followed him up onto the stage. He certainly had the charisma to win; she could hear the gushing from the other tables almost instantly. 

“Hey everyone, I’m Chat Noir of Sigma Thêta Pi. And I’d like to dedicate this song to the beautiful lady that has kept me company all evening.” His words were paired with a wink. 

She slipped down a little as some darted heated gazes prickled her skin. But what caused further damage was the intense green stare coming from cat boy on the stage; it rendered her cheeks heated and colored. He only broke contact for a second to nod to the DJ to cue the music.   
  


_ Hey, I was doing just fine before I met you _

_ I drink too much and that's an issue but I'm okay _

_ Hey, you tell your friends it was nice to meet them _

__ But I hope I never see them again  
  


His lips broke out into the biggest smile as he took over the stage and made it his own. But no matter what he did, his eyes met hers every couple of seconds.   
  


_ So baby pull me closer in the backseat of your Rover _

_ That I know you can't afford _

_ Bite that tattoo on your shoulder _

_ Pull the sheets right off the corner _

_ Of the mattress that you stole _

_ From your roommate back in Boulder _

__ We ain't ever getting older  
  


He started to pull off some dance moves, and the crowd went wild.   
  


He had said that they pulled this song randomly out of a hat; what were the chances that it was one of her favorite songs at one point. The longer the thought lingered, the more she remembered that the song was a duet. 

Her head shot up to find his eyes on her, and she knew what was about to happen. In a blink of an eye, he grabbed the other mic and jumped off the stage mid-performance. 

He wasted no time making his way to her table and held out his hand. If she stood, then she would be relaying a message to not only her partner but a crowded bar. Her feet found their footing, and she grabbed the extra mic from his hands in time to start singing in sync with the highlighted words. 

_ You look as good as the day I met you _

_ I forget just why I left you, I was insane _

Marinette’s lips split into a smile as she turned her head back to look at him while walking to the stage. What she didn’t expect was Chat to brush past her to help her up on stage. The strength he used to pull her up, Marinette tried not to yelp. A wave of cheers escaped the crowd, and the realization hit her; they were eating up whatever was between them.  

_ Stay and play that Blink-182 song _

_ That we beat to death in Tucson, okay _

She circled Chat Noir, allowing her fingers to graze over the fabric of his hoodie. When she crossed to the other side, his green eyes immediately snapped to hers and caused warmth to twist inside her chest. 

The rest of the song they fell into sync, mirroring a countermove to their partner. People would have a hard time believing they only met today, Marinette mused. She could hardly believe it herself. 

_ We ain't ever getting older _

_ No we ain't ever getting older _

 

They ended the song facing each other eyes locked. Marinette found herself breathless, but only time would tell if that was the result of the performance or the stranger. The cheers were muted as Chat Noir reached out to push some hair back into its place. 

“Thank you for singing with me,” he mumbled, allowing his hands to linger longer necessary, not that Marinette minded. 

“You’re welcome, Kitty.” 

They made their way back to their seats, everything the announcer said lost on them. 

“You know,” he purred, “I’m pretty sure I won our little bet.” 

Marinette’s mouth dropped open to argue, but remember that they never said their performance had to be a solo one. He had her there. She reached into her purse to pull out a pen. Grabbing his hand, she scrolled several numbers on it. 

“My number, text me tomorrow, and we can set something up.” Although, in theory, she would love to go somewhere now, time had slipped away from her, and it was already past midnight. She had a study session in the morning she couldn’t miss. 

“How do I know this isn’t some wrong number?” He argued. 

Marinette leaned in close enough that a kiss was inches away. “I guess you’re going to have to trust me, Minou.”  She shot up from her seat purse in hand, winked, and then made a beeline for Alya. 

“Time to go,” she grabbed her hand and tugged her away from a prolonged goodbye kiss.

Once they reached the outside, Marinette’s head stopped spinning. She turned her head back to see Chat Noir, still staring at her. The two exchanged smiles before Alya hailed a cab. 

“So I want details with you and lover boy,” immediately spilled out of her best friends mouth and Marinette felt the heat rise to her cheeks. 

“I gave him my number, and he’s going to text me and figure out when we can meet up.” 

Alya’s fangirled giggles drowned to the sound of her cell phone buzzing.  
  


**Unknown: I couldn’t wait until tomorrow to text you. Sweet dreams, I know I will; revolving around Ladybugs.  
**   


Marinette tapped her phone to her lips, thinking of a reply.  
  


**Marinette: You sure are confident, how do I know you don’t say that to all the Ladybugs you meet?**  
  


**Unknown: You caught me. But in my defense, you’re the only Ladybug I’ve met ;)  
**   
Her smile widened.

**Marinette: Fair enough. Meet me at the Starbucks on 13 Boulevard Saint-Michel at 11 am where I can inform you proper lyrics of Blank Space.**

It took seconds for a response. 

**Unknown: it’s a date, My Lady.  
**   


A blush stained her cheeks with color as she shoved the phone in her pocket and turned her attention back to her best friend. If this was how they bantered after a first meeting, who knows what will happen. She realized that she had never got his real name, but if she texted him now, they would talk all night. It would have to wait until tomorrow. His last text flashed in her mind again, causing her stomach to tie itself in knots. 

Dumb Cat. 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! There might be a part two, so keep an eye out. 
> 
> The reasoning for the song choices: So I did research and Blank Space had a ton of mistaken lyrics at that same line either with Starbucks and garlic, (none of which I've actually heard while listening to the song.)
> 
> I included Closer, because it was a song that I've always heard wrong. 
> 
> Let me know what you think!


End file.
